IBIE 2016 numbers soared above levels it hasn't seen in decades, and shattered all booth sales and square footage records to date!

Let's Get This Party Started!

IBIE Committee Members "Break Bread" for the official opening of IBIE 2016.

ABA Offers Business-Focused Education Sessions at IBIE

ABA led several business-focused sessions at IBIE addressing trends, policies and solutions

Todd Hale Explores Opportunities to Explore Growth

Hale encouraged bakers to leverage the power of baking in their retail engagements and adapt offerings to appeal to diverse populations, and to also consider opportunities for branded and private brand growth.

ABA Supports the Future of the Baking Industry

ABA leaders with a group of Kansas State University students, some of which are former ABA interns!

The Bigger the Team, the Bigger the ROI

When attending IBIE, Jim Martin knows that bringing a large team is the only way to divide and conquer and cover everything there is to do and see at IBIE!

Innovation, Innovation, Innovation

"There were a record number of exhibitors and a greater focus on innovation in ingredients, technology and equipment. My team and I came back with a number of potential projects that we believe can improve our business." - ABA Chairman Fred Penny, Bimbo Bakeries USA

Global Baking Night

The ABA and BEMA Boards came together to celebrate the success of the baking industry.

IBIE Was Successful - and FUN!

Generations Come Together

The industry's "next generation of bakers" enjoyed networking with the seasoned pros at the craft beer reception hosted by ABA's NextGenBaker.

Bakers Stand Ready to Help Washington Get to Work

With the election of Donald Trump, and a slightly narrower Republican majority in Congress, official Washington and the national punditocracy is both stunned and clamoring to find meaning in the election results. There is one simple takeaway from the recent election: the majority of Americans are frustrated with the lack of progress on the economy and feel as though Washington is ignoring their concerns. Given the choice between an extreme outside candidate and a candidate with over 30 years of public service, the outcome should not surprise anyone. American voters have a long history of shaking things up about once a generation.

The question now turns to this: what does the election outcome mean for the baking industry? While it is too early to look at specific policies, clearly President-elect Trump and Republican leaders in Congress will be focused on jump-starting the economy. They know all too well that American voters didn’t buy the Republican brand, but are giving Republicans the keys to the country with the expectation of getting the economy working again.

A broad agenda is already starting to take shape, including:

Rolling back the most onerous Executive Orders signed by President Obama;

Halting all major new regulations;

Passing a federal funding measure;

Nominating a Supreme Court justice; and

Beginning to work on both short and longer term tax reforms.

Considering this broad agenda, there will be opportunities to finish up some outstanding ABA priorities such as harmonizing the myriad of upcoming labeling deadlines, seeking relief from the onerous Hours of Services regulations impacting bakery distribution, and possibly slowing down the DOL’s overtime regulation.

In addition, it looks like the numerous costly regulatory proposals that were in the pipeline pre-election will all come to at least a temporary halt. Proposals such as joint employer, quick union elections, ethanol emissions, sodium and fiber all are under the microscope. The big unknown is what will happen to the Affordable Care Act. As much as one would like to see the complete and immediate repeal, it has so rewired the American health care system that repealing and replacing Obamacare will be a delicate proposition both logistically as well as politically.

While we are in the early stages of exploring the impact of this historic and surprising election, ABA is already pivoting in the new environment. Working through its committees to explore ways to both mitigate or halt costly and disruptive policy initiatives as well as opportunities to strengthen the baking industry, ABA is positioning itself to be effective. ABA’s Committees will be looking at costs, benefits and realistic areas on which to be effective. They will be making recommendations to the ABA Executive Committee and Board in the coming months. The only guidance has been to “think big, think creatively” in addressing the biggest impediments to the baking industry’s success.

One final thought: the American people also knew that the makeup of the Supreme Court and federal judiciary was at stake in this election. For the first time in 35 years, the historic check against an out-of control federal bureaucracy was being contested. From all accounts, the American people chose candidates that would preserve that check on the Washington bureaucracy.

Now that the election is over and the country has chosen a different path, it is time for Washington to get to work. There are enormous challenges facing the country, and Americans chose candidates they believe will move toward addressing those challenges. ABA stands ready to assist policymakers in tackling them. That will require even more engagement and participation on the part of our members. I am sure they will rise to the challenge.